The NBA has always had a great number of unbelievably gifted players and this year is no exception. Even the rookie class is ultra-talented with Derrick Rose of the Bulls and OJ Mayo of the Grizzlies playing like they’re seasoned veterans.

In the second part of my season year-end review for the 2008-2009 season, these are the Top 8 players in my list, in order, as to who have been on an absolute tear as of the end of ’08, alongside the Top 6 surprise stars of the mid-season, and 4 players who have been a total disappointment. Again, these are MY opinions, you can beg to differ but it doesn’t have to be violent, he he.

TOP 8:

1. DWIGHT HOWARD (ORL) – Superman has been an absolute monster this season leading the league in rebounds (13.8 a game) and blocks (3.7 a game). His post presence has improved significantly and he looks even better than last year. But alas his kryptonite is still his free throw percentage (56.5%), but even that has improved, or at least his form definitely has. The Magic are 3rd in the East and 4th overall in the league with an impressive 25-7 record!

He has made his teammates better by demanding consistent double and triple teams while dishing the ball out to all his 3-ball savvy teammates who make more than they miss. Rashard Lewis (leader with 93 makes), Hedo Turkoglu (26th with 52 makes), and Jameer Nelson (29th with 48 makes) have all benefitted from all the attention Dwight has been getting. And I will bet that this Magic team will get to the Conference Finals this year unless Dwight gets injured. Kudos to Superman whose average game has him tally 15 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocks a game. That is just unheard of.

2. LEBRON JAMES (CLE) – everyone says King James is going to win MVP this year, and he has not disappointed. He has staggering numbers all across the board, ranking 2nd in scoring behind Wade, having more than 6 boards and 6 dimes on average each game, with 2 steals and a block, and a very much improved percentage this year from the line at 77% while shooting better than 50% from the field! Are you kidding me?! He has also led the Cavs to a spotless 16-0 record at home and doesn’t look like he’s slowing down anytime soon. The addition of Mo Williams has also made him better and allows him to rest and be fresh for end games, not to mention the playoffs. Barring any injury to Lebron, they are hands down a shoo-in for the playoffs this year and a huge contender to come out of the East. Lebron for MVP!

3. DWYANE WADE (MIA) – is the Flash back or is the Flash back?! After an inspiring gold medal redemption at the Olympics last year, Wade seems to have ridden that wave and continued his utter dominance of any defense that tries to stop him. He is the league leader in points (30.2 a game), 4th in steals (2.2 a game), and 19th in blocks (1.6 a game) and that’s for a point guard! He is clutch down the stretch and is up there with Lebron as the glue that keeps his team together. His team is also in the playoff hunt holding the 6th spot with a 17-13 record which hopes to improve even further unless he gets injured again.

4. KOBE BRYANT (LAL) – the reigning MVP is at it again this year. Posting “modest” numbers this season due to a better supporting cast, he is still one of the top players in the NBA today. The Black Mamba is playing less minutes but is still ranked 3rd in scoring at 26.9 points a game. He has always been a consistent all-around performer (5.3 rpg and 4.3 apg) and is the heart and soul of a very hungry Laker squad that looks to win the championship this year. His squad is tops in the NBA as of this moment toting a 28-6 record and have been destroying their opponents left and right. His chemistry with Gasol will be the key to their success this year as well as Bynum’s return.

5. CHRIS PAUL (NOR) – arguably the best point guard in the league today, he leads all players in assists (11.6) and steals (2.87) but also averages 20.5 points and 5.3 rebounds for a 6-foot flat point guard! He is the heart and soul of a still under-rated Hornets squad who are 8th overall in the NBA and 4th in the West toting a very respectable 21-11 record. He set an all-time NBA milestone as he went on a 108-game steal streak that ended on Christmas Day against the Magic. Whether or not the Hornets do better this year in the playoffs has yet to be seen, but they are definitely a team no one wants to play and are definitely the darkhorse this year.

6. DANNY GRANGER (IND) 7. DIRK NOWITZKI (DAL) 8. AL JEFFERSON (MIN)

Honorable mentions go to Joe Johnson of the Hawks, Chris Bosh of the Raptors, Vince Carter of the Nets, Tim Duncan of the Spurs, and Brandon Roy of the Blazers.

Next: Top 6 Surprises and the 4 Biggest Disappointments

I have to say, it’s a pure joy to be able to watch the NBA every single day now, thanks to BTV! And this season has been “simply amazing” to watch. There have been quite a number of surprises and disappointments in the current 2008-2009 NBA season and this is the first part of my year-end review of the teams that are surpassing everyone’s expectations and the teams that have been total disasters. These are the Top 5 teams and 5 most disappointing teams of the league in the first half.

TOP 5:

1. LOS ANGELES LAKERS (25-5) – it was a toss-up but Kobe’s squad had their revenge against the Celtics on Christmas day by defeating them by 9 at home. It was the same day Phil Jackson notched his 1000th win and became the fastest coach to do so surpassing Pat Riley. The Lakers are 16-1 at home and are definitely the most balanced squad in the league. And with Jordan Farmar being out until late February due to surgery, the Lakers still haven’t missed a beat.

2. BOSTON CELTICS (28-5) – they were off to a historic, franchise-best 27-2 slate which is the BEST start in NBA history for a team with only 2 losses. In that streak, they are currently 17-1 at home, had a 19-game winning streak, and had KG surpass David Robinson for 27th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.

Unfortunately, December was a terrible month for them as they ended their West Coast year end trip with a 1-3 slate starting with that Christmas loss to the Lakers on the road, and followed it up with a terrible loss to the hapless Warriors who were without 2 of their main guns. And then they ended the year losing to a Roy-less Blazer squad to close out their record at 28-5. They’re still the team to beat as you can’t put down the Big 3. But losing Posey is going to be quite glaring in the playoffs and it looks like a rough road ahead  if they go up against the Magic or the Cavs in the early rounds.

3. CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (26-5) – King James has a little helper named Mo Williams now, and the Cavs look rock solid. They lead the league in point differential at more than 12.5 points a game, and they are tops in points allowed which is a testament to their defensive mindset They are also the only team in the league with a perfect 16-0 slate at home and will challenge the Celtics in this year’s playoffs and have a very good chance at toppling them this time around.

4. ORLANDO MAGIC (24-7) – whoever doubted that the Magic would be one of the elite teams in the league this year are now hush hush. Dwight Howard has been an absolute monster posting career numbers yet again this year. He leads the league in rebounds (13.8 a game) and blocks (3.7 a game) coupled with 19.8 points a game and shoots 54.7% from the field. You put him alongside 2 of the best 3 point shooters in the league in Rashard Lewis (leads the league with 90 makes) and Hedo Turkoglu (with 50 makes) and their much improved court general in Jameer Nelson (who also has 47 threes made) makes this Magic squad a team to be reckoned with. I’m 100% sure no one wants to play this team in the playoffs this year and rightfully so.

5. NEW ORLEANS HORNETS (19-9) – with the best point guard in the league running this team, the Hornets are off to a solid start. Chris Paul leads the league in assists (11.5 a game) and steals (2.93 a game) and now holds the NBA record for consecutive games with a steal at 108!  With the demotion of Mo Pete (finally) and the rise of Rasual Butler and with their key acquisition this year in James Posey from the Celtics, the Hornets look to improve on their playoff performance last year and get to the Finals. And with this lineup, that is a very distinct possibility.

Next: Can These 5 Teams Get Any Worse?

For all the basketball fans who read this blog, I uncovered an article written by Buster Dunning of RealGM, where he interviewed the suspended and injured Monta Ellis of the Golden State Warriors as he finally talks about how he really got injured.

Months ago, Ellis’ 2008-2009 career went from promising to practically nothing, when he had a terrible moped accident that not only led to a severe injury, but also to a very lengthy suspension meted out by the Warriors. He first came out saying that he had injured himself badly playing pick-up games but in the end it was found out that it was because of him racing on a moped with some of his friends. Tsk tsk.

This is the entire interview done by Buster Dunning as he spoke to Monta Ellis about the entire incident. The article below is copied from the RealGM website, and should be read carefully. Enjoy the article!

Monta Ellis Tells All: I was Racing Baron and Elton

After Lebron James had won his Gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, he held an online contest called “LeBron’s Trick Shot Challenge sponsored by Cub Cadet.” A guy named David Kalb of La Habra, California, won it by throwing a ball against a wall and have it bounce back and through a hoop on a forklift that is spinning in a circle (see link below). And by winning that contest, he had the chance to play against Lebron James for a game of H-O-R-S-E.

The judges of the contest picked nine of the best entries while fans narrowed the field to just three. James then picked the winner and faced David Kalb for a game of H-O-R-S-E in Venice Beach, California, on a Wednesday evening. Kalb eventually beat Lebron with a bunch of different trick shots that included bouncing the ball high in the lane, and then racing around the goal post, catching the ball as it came down and alley-ooping it into the basket (again, see the link below). James missed his try, and after losing the first game, declared best two-of-three. Each made quite a few trick shots, but Kalb still went on to win the second game. After Lebron missed his final shot, he tossed the ball away in humorous anger, and then congratulated Kalb. Nice gimmick by Lebron, it would have been nice if he had won though

Kalb beats Lebron James in H-O-R-S-E: Los Angeles Times Video

With 9 out of 10 ESPN experts (and myself) picking the Lakers to win it all this year, the only one who picked it right was Tim Legler and of course the hundreds of Celtics fans in Boston   The Celtics blew the Lakers out of the building by 39 points, 131-92 being the final score.  As history has always shown, defense really DOES win championships, and this Celtic team proved just that.

Before the Finals started, I predicted the Lakers would win in 5 games   What a shame haha!  I said that if Eddie House and James Posey could come in and hit their stride, and most importantly if Rondo can hit his outside jumper and plays well in the point guard spot, the Lakers would be in trouble.  I assumed they all wouldn’t, and they proved me, as well as everyone else who bet against them, wrong.

The Celtics were never out of any of these games because of the amazing D they played on every single position.  Odom could do nothing, Gasol could do nothing, and in the most important game of their season, Kobe could do nothing to stop the Celtics destiny and the Big 3 getting the first rings of their careers.

There’s really no analysis needed, as this Finals series belonged to the Boston Celtics, hands down, without any doubt.  I’m bummed that the Lakers lost, but the Big 3, all really nice guys, totally deserve it… and Paul Pierce, must be in Cloud 9 right now.  He played his best ball around KG and Ray Allen, and TRULY deserved the Finals MVP that he got.  He was definitely the most consistent in all the games even when KG and Allen were resting on the bench.  Ray Allen also ties the most 3′s in a Finals game with 7, and KG, was his most dominant on both ends of the floor today.  There was no way the Lakers could have won, and there would be no comebacks either.  Oh, and what about my favorite whipping boy, who showed up today as well as almost every game in the Finals, Mr Rondo?  These were his stats:  21 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 6 steals, and 1 turnover.  Wow.

Last thing I want to say.  If you guys know the history of Kevin Garnett, being part of a very bad Timberwolves team for many years, and always dropping out of the playoffs in the 1st Round, he has finally gotten what he has worked so hard for.  It is a great feeling, also as a fan of KG, to see him finally get what he deserves.  I hope they post a video of how emotional he was when he was being interviewed when the game ended.  He had two great lines that can only refer to his career.  The first was when he said that he’s finally “CERTIFIED” because he has finally won a ring and set his name as one of the greatest power forwards to ever play the game.  And nothing certifies you more than when you win a championship.  And the second, was when he turned around and saw Bill Russell and hugged him, and said “I GOT MY OWN NOW, I GOT MY OWN NOW!”

Better luck next time to Kobe

The NBA Playoffs 2008 have officially ended and there are two teams that remain after three grueling rounds in the playoffs. The Finals of the NBA 2008 season pit the two best teams this year and the two expected teams to come out of the East and West, both number one seeds.

The Lakers had a relatively easy time advancing, even if they had gone up against more formidable opponents. They swept through the AI-Melo led Nuggets in Round 1, then dropped the solid Jazz team in 6 games to close out Round 2, and then defeated their nemesis the Spurs in 5 games to close out the Western Conference Finals.

These 3 teams were very tough and looked to challenge the Lakers strongly, but Kobe and the gang easily closed out each series. Even when they seemed down and out, the Lakers would just need one quarter to come back and close out the games, finishing their playoff run with only 3 losses, and winning all their home games. They are the favorites to win it all this year, even admist the Big 3 on the other side, that look to oust them in the Finals.

The Celtics, on the other hand, were THE team to beat this year and were on top of all headlines this year with the presence of the Big 3. It was a certainty that they would reach this point, and anything less would have been a total disaster.

Boasting of 3 of the top players in the league, they went through a very tough 3 rounds to get to the Finals. The upstart Hawks pushed them to Game 7 in Round 1, they narrowly escaped Lebron’s Cavs by 5 points in another Game 7 in Round 2, and then took the Pistons out in 6 games in the Conference Finals.

Does all this matter when they get to the Finals? Well for me, yes it does. Even if the Celtics won both games against the Lakers this year, it was without Gasol and with the Lakers still taking it easy. The Lakers are a totally different team right now, while the Celtics look very, very vulnerable.

It should be a good Finals series to watch, but it looks like the Lakers will take it in 5 or 6 games. This is definitely not going to go 7 games, unless by some miracle the Celtics win both home games and take one from the Laker floor. I just don’t see the Lakers losing at home at all in the post-season, and should pretty much take the Larry O’Brien trophy in Game 5 at home.

My prediction would be the Lakers winning in 5 games, with the Celtics winning just one home game.  Click HERE for a more detailed look at the Finals this year.